At this time the ZPUino IDE does not work if there are spaces in the path, the installer will place the ZPUino IDE in the root of your C: drive instead of in Program Files. If you do not want this to happen then choose "Custom" install type and deselect the ZPUino IDE. You will not be able to edit the RetroCade sketch if you deselect this option.
Upon receiving your RetroCade Synth the first thing you will want to do is install the latest firmware to the hardware to ensure you have all the latest bug fixes and features. The latest firmware is included with the Windows Installer and can be accessed from the Start Menu.
The RetroCade Synth does not ship with a Mini-B USB cable but they are so common that most users will already have one. Many cell phones and handheld electronic devices will use a Mini-B USB cable.
Once you are running the latest firmware you are ready to connect a MIDI keyboard or controller to the RetroCade Synth and start playing the various sound chips. All features of the sound chips are mapped to MIDI Control Changes so if your MIDI keyboard has knobs and sliders they can be mapped to control all functionality of the RetroCade Synth. Refer to the RetroCade MIDI CC-NRPN Chart for more info. There are two options to control which voice you are playing, you can use the joystick and the LCD screen on the RetroCade to select a voice or you can change the channel on your MIDI keyboard. The voices are mapped according to the following chart:
MIDI Channel | Sound Chip | Sound Chip Voice |
1 | SID | Voice 1 |
2 | SID | Voice 2 |
3 | SID | Voice 3 |
4 | YM2149 | Voice A |
5 | YM2149 | Voice B |
6 | YM2149 | Voice C |
The RetroCade Control Dashboard is an optional interface that adds a nice, intuitive way to control all the features of the RetroCade sound chips. If your MIDI keyboard does not include knobs and sliders, or you just want an easier to use interface then take a look at the RetroCade Control Dashboard.
Start the RetroCade Control Dashboard
Connect RetroCade Control Dashboard to RetroCade Hardware
There are two ways for the RetroCade Control Dashboard to connect to the RetroCade Hardware:
Use the Computer Keyboard to play Notes
Connect a MIDI Keyboard
Zooming
Presets
Play some sample MOD and YM files The RetroCade firmware includes some sample MOD and YM files that can be played as soon as a control connection is established.
The MOD and YM tracks that are shipped with the firmware are located in the SmallFS filesystem that resides in SPI Flash. Any of the tracks can be overridden by placing a corresponding track onto the SD card. Files named track[1-3].mod will override the mod tracks and files named track[1-3].ymd will override the YM tracks. The YM files need to be converted into ymd (YM Data) files using the following procedure and tools.